Impeached Speaker of the Kogi State House of Assembly, Alhaji Momoh-Jimoh Lawal, today, presided over the presentation of the 2016 budget proposal by the state governor, Captain Idris Wada on the floor of the House of Assembly in Lokoja, even as he appealed to members to allow peace to reign so as to move the state forward.
The speaker referred to members of the Assembly as elder statesmen and patriots who should not sacrifice the interest of the state on the altar of selfish interests.
“As elder statesmen and patriots, I wish to appeal that we sheath our swords and close ranks to move the state forward. As members of one House and one family, we cannot do without having misunderstanding among ourselves.
“What we must always guard against is a situation where we allow rancour and bitterness to linger on and our differences unresolved. As trustees and representatives of the people, much is expected of us by the electorate.
“We cannot afford to sacrifice the interest of the state at the altar of personal and selfish interests.
“Rather than bickering here and there and heating up the polity, we should rather unite and work together to ensure that the unity of the state is maintained.”
Lawal described the state as a collective patrimony, even as he enjoined members to guard against being used by external forces to jeopardise the peace and stability of the state.
On the 2016 budget presented by Wada to 10 of the 25-member House, Lawal said that members present formed a quorum, and that the bill would undergo necessary legislative process before passage.
He said the budget was realistic, adding that all leakages through which the state economy was hitherto plundered would be blocked to make the budget implementable. [myad]

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has warned that the N6.08 trillion 2016 federal budget presented by President Muhammadu Buhari is loaded with time-bomb that would destroy the country.
The party further warned that with the proposed borrowing of N1.84 trillion, the country is going the way of Greece.
The National Publicity Secretary of the party, Olisa Metuh, in a statement today, said that a breakdown of the N1.84 trillion shows that Nigeria would be borrowing N5 billion a day for the next 365 days, starting from January I, 2016, without corresponding provision for economic production and a clear repayment plan.
He insisted that such scenario “spells doom for the future of the nation.
“Some people may be wondering why we raised an alarm about the budget. The reason is simple. When we analyzed the budget, we discovered it is a misshapen attempt at a Keynesian economics of applying deficit spending to stimulate growth even when studies have proven that GDP growth rates decrease by over 50% when debt goes from low or moderate to high. “But then we know the borrowing here is to pay huge campaign debt and fund a political war chest.
“By every standard, this budget is a booby trap against the nation. When you break down the proposed N1.84 trillion borrowing, you discover that it amounts to borrowing N5 billion everyday for the 365 days in 2016. The questions are: for what specific projects are they borrowing N5 billion per day and how do they intend to pay back?
“The President should explain to Nigerians how they intend to pay back the loan. Is it by continuous borrowing to service the interests, and does he intend to accumulate colossal debt for future generations of Nigerians?
“The truth is that this administration cannot justify this proposal. There is no known economy in the world where you can justify borrowing N1.84 trillion without specific projects and precise repayment outline. “This is worse still in an oil-driven, mono-economy at a time crude oil is selling at $30 dollars per barrel and is speculated to go down to about $20 dollars or even lower in the next one year.”
The PDP spokesman said that the idea of borrowing could be adopted when the nation diversifies the economy and boost production capacity in manufacturing and other critical sectors, saying that this is a direction which the budget clearly failed to provide.
“From all indicators, the borrowing will be negative. They are driving us to be like Greece, and to plunge us into unnecessary debt. When the PDP took office in 1999, we achieved the cancellation of inherited debts. This administration, in seeking to accumulate debts, should know that there is no possibility that any country in the world will give us debt cancellation anymore.
“More importantly, we are really worried about negative economic policies of the present administration and the copying of strategies that failed in other economies. Recall that we had earlier alerted on the negative consequences of the retrogressive foreign exchange controls wherein this government is making it impossible for honest Nigerians to engage in free trade and regulate their personal activities.
“There seems to be the erroneous belief that the controls will create foreign exchange stability or strengthen the Naira by limiting foreign currency outflows. This policy had badly affected other countries in the recent past; including Argentina, whose new government had to reverse the policy to save their economy. Why then are we copying a policy that failed in other countries?
“In practice, the kind of crude controls the Federal Government is implementing have been proven ineffective in preventing capital flight. By limiting the local availability of foreign exchange, the controls have instead increased the demand for foreign exchange, putting greater pressure on the naira and achieving the exact opposite of what the government in its naivety believed would happen.
“The negative impacts of the ill-conceived controls include the hindering of international trade and discouraging of foreign investment. We have seen first-hand the crippling of the private sector in the last six months, upon the implementation of these measures were out. Traders, importers and all manner of businesses are being destroyed as a result of the contrived unavailability of foreign exchange.”
The PDP spokesman challenged the Federal Government to a public and open debate on the budget devoid of the sentiments of the APC-controlled National Assembly and who are minded against any cuts in their own allocation. [myad]

Professor Foluke Ogunleye, an elder sister of the special adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on media and publicity, Femi Adesina, is dead.
Professor Ogunleye, who is a lecturer at the Department of Dramatic Arts at the Obafemi
Awolowo University (OAU) in Ile-Ife, died in an auto crash along the Lagos/Ibadan expressway.
The Public Relations Officer of OAU, Mr. Abiodun Olanrewaju, confirmed the death of Professor Ogunleye.
The deceased was the Head of the Department of Dramatic Arts in OAU between 2006 and 2009. She was popular for writing plays including; “Nest in a Cage” and “Jabulile”. Ogunleye was also the Executive Director, Ife International Film Festival of OAU.
Meanwhile, the former Governor of Abia State, Dr. Orji Kalu has expressed sadness and shock over the death of Professor Foluke Ogunleye, describing her death as a tragedy.
Kalu, in a statement, described Professor Ogunleye as an outstanding scholar and a renowned author, who contributed immensely to the academia in different capacities beyond the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Osun State community.
The statement, signed by Special Adviser, Kunle Oyewumi, Kalu said: “I was destabilized and heartbroken on hearing the news of the passing of Femi’s sister, Prof. Fouke Ogunleye of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife. She was humble and easy going despite her intimidating academic credentials. She exhibited selflessness in all her endeavours in life. A good woman has departed this sinful world.
“Our hearts and prayers are with the entire Adesina family at this grieving period. May her gentle soul rest in peace.”
While commiserating with the authorities and students of Obafemi Awolowo University and University of Ibadan, Kalu prayed for the speedy recovery of the deceased’s husband, Prof. Ogunleye, who was also involved in the accident. [myad]